Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card: Is It Good for Delta Customers
Editorial Note: The content of this article is based on the author’s opinions and recommendations alone. It has not been previewed, commissioned or otherwise endorsed by any credit card issuer.
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The Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card is the only $0 annual fee Delta credit card, and worth your consideration if you're a low spender who occasionally travels with the airline. While this card has no features that make it extraordinary, the fact that it has a $0 annual fee and above-average rewards in certain shopping categories, like dining out, makes it a decent card to consider getting.
Review: Is The Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card Worth Applying For?
The Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card is excellent for occasional Delta customers who want a way to earn extra miles towards award travel. However, if you are a frequent Delta flyer or check multiple bags with the carrier throughout the year, you should probably apply for one of the other Delta credit cards. If you're simply looking for a good rewards card, and don't particularly need one affiliated with Delta, look for cash back cards like the Capital One® Savor® Cash Rewards Credit Card.
|
Good For… | Bad For… |
|---|---|
| Individuals after a Delta card with no annual fee | Individuals who frequently fly with Delta in groups |
| Use at restaurants and when paying for Delta tickets | Those looking for more airline perks, like free checked bags or companion tickets |
The Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card is the only Delta credit card with a $0 annual fee, which makes it fairly special. If you're a low spender, and don't want to commit to any of the other Delta cards, this is a good option. While the rewards this card provides aren't anything too special, the fact that it has a $0 annual fee makes it at least worth your consideration.
The card shines most when it comes to getting you extra miles from restaurant and Delta purchases. In those two categories, it can reach rewards rates higher than 2%. When it comes to all other purchases, you get just a 1% rewards rate, which can be outdone by most good cash back credit cards. As with all Delta credit cards, the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card also provides a 20% discount on in-flight food and beverage purchases, on any Delta-operated flights.
Bottom Line: The Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card is a good $0 annual fee credit card option for consumers who sometimes fly with Delta. While we don't recommend this become your go-to everyday credit card, there's enough value in it for everyone to consider. It's not one of the best airline credit cards, but it's not bad either.
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card Benefits & Features
The Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card awards Delta Skymiles with every purchase. Users Earn 2X Miles per dollar spent on Delta purchases and at restaurants, now worldwide. Earn 1X Mile on all other eligible purchases. The points you earn on Delta purchases are earned on top of the miles you already would normally earn with those transactions. If you're a non-medallion member, you get 5 miles per USD. With the card's 2 mile bonus, you'd be earning a total of 7 miles per dollar with each ticket.
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Additionally, cardholders Earn 10,000 bonus miles after you spend $500 in purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months. We estimate this bonus to be worth approximately $130, which is decent as far as $0 annual fee credit cards are concerned. To get this bonus, you must reach the threshold through purchases only. Balance transfers and cash advances do not count.
What Are Delta Skymiles Worth?
Skymiles by Delta Air Lines is not the most warmly received frequent flyer program, due to its restrictions and high prices. How much value you get out of a single mile can vary drastically, depending on when you redeem. On average, we estimate a single mile to be worth $0.013. However, this value can fall down to $0.005 or climb as high as $0.029. After averaging dozens of flights from different itineraries, here are some the sampled mile values.
| Delta Flight Type | Mile Value Range |
|---|---|
| Domestic Main Cabin | $0.01 - $0.013 |
| Domestic First/Business Class | $0.007 - $0.015 |
| International Main Cabin | $0.013 - $0.016 |
| International First/Business Class | $0.019 - $0.04 |
You will generally find the best priced award tickets on flights between Delta's hubs. These include New York, Salt Lake City, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Paris, London and Amsterdam. We also found that business class seats will generally get you better value per mile than main cabin tickets.
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card, please click here.
How Does The Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card Compare To Other Credit Cards?
As a consumer, you have the option of applying for any credit card — not just the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card. To help better inform you of your options, we compared the card against some of the other available choices.
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card vs Delta SkyMiles® Gold Card
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The Delta SkyMiles® Gold Card may be the better option for cardholders who check four bags per year on Delta flights. Your first checked bag is free on Delta-operated flights you pay for using this card. However, in all other instances, we recommend getting the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card instead. The fact that the card has a $0 annual fee and is better at earning miles day-to-day than the Delta SkyMiles® Gold Card is enough for us to recommend it.
Click here for our full review of the Delta SkyMiles® Gold Card
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Gold Card, please click here.
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card vs Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Card
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Get the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Card if you don't travel alone, take several Delta flights per year (with checked bags), and spend over $25,000 annually. Despite having a very high annual fee of $250, the extra benefits you get through the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Card make it well worth it, especially when compared to the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card. The card provides a free round trip companion ticket each year, 10,000 bonus miles anytime you spend at least $25k on your card each year, and the ability to earn extra Medallion Qualifying Miles (MQMs).
Click here for our full review of the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Card
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Card, please click here.
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card vs Capital One® Savor® Cash Rewards Credit Card
If you have no particular loyalty to Delta, we recommend considering the Capital One® Savor® Cash Rewards Credit Card instead. The card provides 4% Cash Back on dining; 4% Cash Back on entertainment; 2% Cash Back at grocery stores; 1% Cash Back on all other purchases. Plus, earn 8% cash back on tickets at Vivid Seats through Jan 2022. In that way, the card is much more rewarding on dining purchases than the Delta card. The Capital One® Savor® Cash Rewards Credit Card also has no foreign transaction fees, making it great for thrifty travelers who want to minimize the fees they have to pay while they are outside of the country.
Click here for our full review of the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card
Joe Resendiz is a former investment banking analyst for Goldman Sachs, where he covered public sector and infrastructure financing. During his time on Wall Street, Joe worked closely with the debt capital markets team, which allowed him to gain unique insights into the credit market. Joe is currently a research analyst who covers credit cards and the payments industry. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin, where he majored in finance.
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How We Calculate Rewards: ValuePenguin calculates the value of rewards by estimating the dollar value of any points, miles or bonuses earned using the card less any associated annual fees. These estimates here are ValuePenguin's alone, not those of the card issuer, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the credit card issuer.
Example of how we calculate the rewards rates: When redeemed for travel through Ultimate Rewards, Chase Sapphire Preferred points are worth $0.0125 each. The card awards 2 points on travel and dining and 1 point on everything else. Therefore, we say the card has a 2.5% rewards rate on dining and travel (2 x $0.0125) and a 1.25% rewards rate on everything else (1 x $0.0125).